Syme Looks To Outshine His Younger South African Open Playing Partners

7 months ago by Comments Off on Syme Looks To Outshine His Younger South African Open Playing Partners

Connor Syme finds himself the senior member, albeit by a handful of years, in being drawn to play alongside his talented younger playing partners for the opening two rounds of the Investec South African Open on the host Durban Country Club course in Durban.

Syme, 29, will tee-up alongside 20-year-old Spanish sensation Angel Ayora and the exciting South African Casey Jarvis who’s aged 21 and some eight months older than Ayora.

Ayora ended last year’s secondary Tour fourth on the rankings and thus secured his place on the main DP World Tour.

Ayora quickly headed ‘Down Under’ for his maiden event, sharing sixth place in the co-sanctioned Australian PGA Championship and then ahead of the following week’s Australian Open there was sensational news that Ayora had reportedly turned down a multi-million dollar offer to join Martin Kaymer’s LIV Golf Cleeks team.

Ayora dispelled the headlines and has since produced a further three top-20s efforts on the DP World Tour in his proceeding six events since being ‘Down Under’

Syme tees-up this week, and like many in the field, for a first time in Durban and after last week playing at close to 6,000 feet in Kenya back at sea level in South Africa’s third largest city that is hosting the country’s national Open for the first time since 2010.

It will be Syme’s third showing in the tournament but a first since finishing 10th in 2015.

He said: “It’s been some time since I last contested a South African Open and it’s also my first visit to Durban.

“All the South African guys were raving about the course last week when we were playing up in Kenya and they’ve not been wrong”.

Richie Ramsay is a former South African Open champion denying the likes of further South African-born major winners in Charl Schwartzel and Louis Oosthuizen to capture the 2009 crown.

It’s been 12-years since Ramsay was last in Durban when he finished T9th in the 2013 Volvo Champions event on this week’s course that underwent major changes soon after the horrific 2022 floods.

So much so, the rework has seen a Scottish-like ‘burn’ now built into the course, that for the most part is below sea level, and with the Indian Ocean just a wedge shot away.

And Ramay likes what he’s seen.

He said: “It’s has been renovated and feels better.

“Some new greens with less trees for air flow while I like the new channel that runs through the bottom of the course to help any flooding that adds a little more risk reward”.

Joining Syme and Ramsay are fellow Scots Callum Hill and Scott Jamieon.

However, the practice plans of all 156 players were ruined when heavy rain closed the course to the traditional Wednesday Pro-Am.



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